Custom Choppers

Staff Sgt. Jim Irby, an Alabama National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk crew chief, paints flames on his aircraft at Mather Field, Calif. The washable fluorescent paint makes it easier for firefighting aircraft to see one another in the smoky conditions near the fires. Alabama is one of 14 states that sent aircrews and aircraft to California to assist in the fire-fighting effort.

Staff Sgt. Jim Irby, an Alabama National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk crew chief, paints flames on his aircraft at Mather Field, Calif. The washable fluorescent paint makes it easier for firefighting aircraft to see one another in the smoky conditions near the fires. Alabama is one of 14 states that sent aircrews and aircraft to California to assist in the fire-fighting effort.